Hi,
Contemplating a Hyundai Galloper turbo Diesel 1998.

Any comments/advice.

Planning Cairo to Capetown, so reliability, spares and likelihood of local experts are relevant.

Not planning full on dune bashing, but advice on styraightforward off road ability would be appreciated.

Thanks

JT

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JT http://leeandjames2013.blogspot.hk/

Jamie,
Sorry to be so negative but,don't even think about it.They are used extensively in the Middle East to run the kids to school but,as soon as they are exposed to any amount of offroading they start falling to pieces.

They are common in Egypt and Ive seen them in use in the desert in a fairly low-level way but they are unreliable and limited in ability. They have a fairly decent engine apparently - its the older Shogun engine which Im told is better than the current one in many ways - less electronics and supposedly more torque. Only hearsay though, Ive never used one.
Whereabout are you in Cairo? Matrix in Maadi has a few nice wagons floating about but they arent cheap. I have a mate who's selling his Grand Cherokee if you are interested (not great but better than the Hyundai).
I think the UK Embassy was getting rid of a few Shoguns and Discoveries a while back.... Ill enquire.

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'91 LR 110 Def/Disco hybrid "Elsa"
Bring me the horizon....

Sorry, all Embassy Discoveries and Shoguns now sold, and there was a huge tax cost with them as well

__________________
'91 LR 110 Def/Disco hybrid "Elsa"
Bring me the horizon....

Hi ! I dissagree.

Huuyday Gallopers are indeed Mitsubishi Pajeros/Shoguns . Everything fits as the part-numbers are indeeed the same.

Ok .. Mitsubishis(Gallopers?) are not as though as Toyotas , but they got a much "car like" ride and still quite capable off-roads.

The parts availability is obviously the same as for Mitsubishi (I insist that they are the same machine with different badges) , so that won't be an issue also .

The only problem , apparently , is the lower build quality .. which will lead to things falling off , rattles ,noisess ,etc.. but overall- is still a Mistubishi pajero (indeed winner of Paris-Dakar for around 5 times)

Id go for it definately .

Javier

Yep, they are certainly the same car. Its the old model Shogun/Pajero remanufactured under licence by Hyundai.

I know a Bedouin desert guide who uses one in preference to a Toyota (his mates all use TLCs) but whenever Ive been out with either Gallopers or Mitsus (from memory, 5 different cars, including one brand new Shogun straight from the Cairo dealer) Ive had real issues with their stability and suspension setups - verging on unsafe and certainly unreliable.

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'91 LR 110 Def/Disco hybrid "Elsa"
Bring me the horizon....

>>verging on unsafe and certainly unreliable

Well , indeed , Sahara-Overland's book its a bit wrong when talking about the pajero/shogun/galloper suspension and specially when blaming its automatic freewheeling feature.

Its not true that only lock when going forward and they freewheel when reversing .

Once the automatic hubs are engaged by selecing 4wd and moving forward 1 metre.. they actuate the (front) wheel forwards AND backwards as with a manual hublock. To disengage them (on tarmac , for exsample) one must de-select 4wd AND THEN reverse the car.As long as 4wd is selected ,. that hub will be -for all practical purposes as locked as any other one- .Its kinda magical .. but it works.

Regarding suspension reliability.. well Its torsion bars.. love or hate them .They give a much more car-like ride and still sturdier than springs . The real problem comes when they break ! .

To be fair, I'd say that Shoguns/Pajeros/Gallopers/Monteros are almost as common and capable in Africa as LandCruisers.. -and of course much more reliable than anything land-rover based-.


PS. "Montero" is the name that Mitsubishi did for Pajeros sold in Spain, cos' in Spanish Pajero means something really nasty /

[This message has been edited by javierCarrion (edited 07 July 2005).]

For the avoidance of doubt to the question originator I think we have to be clear that it is the Hyundai we are appraising and not the Mitsubishi.I owned and drove a Mitsubishi Shogun SWB 2.6 petrol for 3 yrs in Oman and pounded it ragged over graded gravel roads and mixed desert.It was a 100% reliable car that only suffered one broken parabolic in that time.Bit underpowered in big dunes but did the job.Recommended for overlanding in LWB format.
The Hyundai may be the same patents but it is assembled by the B team and over 5 years desert driving experience in Dubai saw many of them fail due to poor build quality leading to mechanical failure(or amputation!!).Totally unreliable as an African overlander whereas the Mitsubishi would be excellent IMHO.

Thanks all,
Question academic as it turned out to need duty to be paid ( despite regular plates ). Advice heeded anyway. While it might just about do for the road trip, doesn't seem like it would cope with the bit of egypt desert bashing that I wouldn't be able to resist while still here.

Thanks again

JT

__________________
JT http://leeandjames2013.blogspot.hk/

Here we go again..... buckets of mud at ten paces, turn and fling?

__________________
'91 LR 110 Def/Disco hybrid "Elsa"
Bring me the horizon....

<For the avoidance of doubt to the question originator I think we have to be clear that it is the Hyundai we are appraising and not the Mitsubishi.>

Ok .. leaving aside my unfortunate comment about landrovers (and I drive landrovers , btw)

I think that being the patents the same , the blueprints and part suppliers the same , and the tooling the same a.. Its indeed the same car as a Mitshubishi Shogun , the same as those Daewoos were the same cars as wauxals (if ever, more reliable) .

Having said that ... personal collection of events do not work over here (statistically insignificant) I can say that I drove lots of miles in Africa with a Galloper and no problem .. and I have seen (really ) a mitsubishi with the full-blown engine (timing belt failure)

A much better way to ascenrtain which car is more reliable than other is

www.reliabilityindex.co.uk

which seem a much less biased source than you (drove/owned a Shogun) or me (owned a Galloper)

Pls hava look there which brand is one of the most RELIABLE and which one is the LESS reliable of all !.

-and also ..hava look for landrovers' in that index -

JavierCarrion
Hava nice day.

-and also ..hava look for landrovers' in that index -

JavierCarrion
Hava nice day. [/B][/QUOTE]

Doesnt mention Defenders. Mentions Discoveries. Fair comment. Disco II = a skip.
Ive only mentioned Defenders as thats all Ive owned (apart from a Disco I that a friend kindly carved up cos I needed its guts).

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'91 LR 110 Def/Disco hybrid "Elsa"
Bring me the horizon....

I just bought one for Germany-South Africa trip. We don't plan on driving much offroad, but will of course encounter a bit. Anyways, it seems like a robust car? I hope it will be good enough.

Norwegianguy: You'll have no problems with your vehicle. Just take it easy and enjoy the ride.

I did Saudi Arabia to Cape Town in a Hyundai Tuscon in 2011. The only expenses were petrol, repair to a slow tyre leak, and four new tyers when I entered South Africa. Came down during the rainy season as well and did not get stuck once. Didn't change the oil till I arrived in Cape Town, then did a full service. It was a 2006 model.